Started by Gargel and finished by me, ChrisMSMB, comes a story in which evokes the heart; a tale of the former hero's brother as he is the new defender of the Mushroom Kingdom.

Disclaimer: Nothing is owned here.

So what was edited? Well, grammar and spelling as always. Plus, I combined the final fight into one long chapter instead of three. Now you can view the epicness one page instead of three. :P

Prologue

I could not understand how or why it happened, but it did. He was gone and I was left.

-Flashback-

There we were, face to face with our adversary. Behind him were the princesses we swore to always protect. Mario and I were face to face with Bowser, whom had both Peach and Daisy in his custody.

But the end result was always the same, like you could always predict what was going to happen. This remained true as Bowser once again was defeated in our presence. Mario got a customary kiss from Peach, of course, but something was different this time. They looked lovingly into each others eyes. Daisy and I smiled as we knew what was going on; moving up behind Mario as Daisy moved behind Peach, we "accidentally" pushed the them into each others arms. They both furiously blushed in each others embrace, but after a while Mario grew confident enough to separate the last few inches between their faces into a kiss, a kiss that signified a long awaited "I love you" from the both of them. Daisy smiled broadly while I did the same,

"We did good, didn't we Luigi?"

A loud pound on the ground caused all four of us to jerk up. Bowser laughed evilly as he pulled out a platinum Bill Blaster that immediately fired a platinum Bullet Bill right at us-Mario in particular. Bowser laughed evilly once more, leaving us to deal with the Bullet Bill ourselves. Mario, as quickly as ever, scooped the princess up in his arms bridal style and jumped out the way. He placed her back on her feet as I moved Daisy, in a similar fashion, next to her. Mario kissed Peach on the cheek and winked in a way to tell her "I got this." With a blushing nod of approval, he then looked at me in a serious way as I nodded back,

"I'll protect her, bro."

Mario jumped back into the fray against the Bullet Bill; however no matter what Mario did, the Bullet Bill would not explode upon impact of some other outside force. If it hit the ground, it would only get up and rush at Mario faster and faster and more aggressive with each passing moment...And then it happened: Mario used his hammer to deflect the incoming Bullet Bill. It worked, but instead of hitting the ground like it usually did, it changed its course-it's collision course headed straight for Peach. Daisy was already a safe distance away so I did not have to worry about her; I directed my attention to Peach, scooped her bridal style, and safely jumped out the way. I did, however, forget that Bullet Bills have arms and hands; it was not like they used them or anything, but this one did...and it grabbed the end of my pants, causing me to drop the princess and to fall flat on my back. I groaned in pain as I opened my eyes to see the Bullet Bill speeding faster and faster with its glowing red eyes. The speed totally caught me off guard as I stared in frozen contempt. It came closer and closer as I felt that I was staring at my death-even if I used my hammer it would have not been deflected in time, even if I moved I would not have dodged it time. I shut my eyes tightly, I could not do anything else. I began to think of all the things I wanted to do in life: The next Star Carnival, the next Peach Tournament, the next Mario Kart Grand Prix, my next birthday, the next time I would see Daisy... Daisy...If there was one person I wanted to see before I die, it would be her. That was when I heard the dreaded boom...it was then that I heard crying and...a red cap...

xEnd of flashbackx

How could it have happened? Why must it have happened? Questions like that flooded in my head, but I can give you a straight answer: Me. The reason for Mario's death was me...If only I had not been so clumsy then...I choked on those words. I stared at my prized possession: Mario's hat. My one and only brother's hat. I teared up; me was the single two letter word that stuck to my head.

I kept to myself after the funeral for quite sometime. I miss Mario dearly...and it was all my fault...

I did not even realize that Daisy was sitting next to me until she spoke to me."Mario was a good man," she said, as if to strike up a conversation, "I know he'll look down on you and smile one day."

"If you say so," I said. I looked up for the first time probably and saw her face-her beautiful full of concern. "Daisy, I don't know what to think anymore. When Mario died my whole world just seemed to die along with him."

"You don't mean the end to it all, do you?" she asked, shocked, "Last I checked, you were a life enthusiast."

"I am not so sure anymore."

She sighed, " Luigi, I know Mario's gone but you still have all of us. Peach, Yoshi, Birdo, Toad..." She took both my hands, "And you have me. Luigi, I'll always be there for you."

I looked at her and she looked at me. You have no idea how badly I wanted to hold her hand like this. But today...

"Thanks Daisy," I said as I got up and tried to pose a fake smile. "I am going to step outside." I left through the big double doors, clutching the hat in my two hands. As I stopped in a little green area outside I just look at the hat...

"Me," I silently said to myself, "It all started with me."

This may be the most depressing story I will ever do, but you can bear with me, right? I am sure you may have read worse, anyway.

Coming soon is a first chapter, in which Bowser comes back for round two!

Ciao!